FAA Reexamining Effect of Electronics on Planes

The FAA-formed industry group in charge of examining the effect of personal electronic device on aircraft has begun its six-month study to review and evaluate current policies related to the use of PEDs in commercial flights. The group, made up of representatives from mobile tech, aviation manufacturing, airlines, and other government agencies, will look at the use of electronics (aside from cellphones) during every stage of flight. If you recall from last year, New York Times' Nick Bilton has been on a crusade to get the FAA to reconsider its regulations, specifically to innocuous devices like e-book readers and Wi-Fi tablets. The hurdle to policy change has always been cost, but the formation of this committee shows that the FAA is at least moving in the right direction.